I AM EMBRACING SELF-SUFFICIENCY

“And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:19

I make money, money doesn’t make me.

Good morning! I don’t always start with a salutation, not because I don’t think you deserve it but often because that’s not how I start every day. Every morning isn’t good, I’m not always ready to smile and socialize, but some days (like today) I need to put out my gratefulness… so I am wishing you a good morning as we jump right into today’s affirmation topic: Self-Sufficiency. Needing no one’s help to satisfy one’s basic needs. That’s the raw definition, and please know that if you are suffering and struggling, you have my prayers for comfort and peace. I want better for you and I understand that it’s not always within our immediate reach to obtain the Human Rights we all deserve. There is another layer to this that many, more than would like to admit out loud, sitting on the cusp. Yup, they have enough to have basic meals and keep the roof over their head and energy in their home, but luxury is foreign. Some people have never realized it, so it functions in a dream space, where they’re hopeful for it and wish to see it one day. Some live in it, and I hope if that’s you that you’re so grateful and give back when you can to those less fortunate. But then there’s a special population who have experienced this comfort, and lost it. For whatever reason, self-sufficiency has slipped from your grasp and like every high, you’re chasing it.

I wonder, does it give you anxiety? Not being able to live the way you want? Or have you convinced yourself that if you just work a little harder and a little longer it will be within your grasp? That’s not a bad thought… unless you’re approaching it from the wrong place. If your social life is struggling because you don’t have time for friends, only work… that’s the wrong place. If your mental health is struggling because you can’t think about anything but money… that’s the wrong place. If you’re physically unwell because thinking about going to the doctor means thinking about money you don’t have/want to spend or worse… you don’t want to miss work to take care of it… that’s the wrong place. If you’re angry or jealous of other people for living because you’re not satisfied with your own… that’s the wrong place. I want to affirm you into that right space. Come on, let’s go.

Affirmation 1: I am embracing Self-Sufficiency. The first thing you’ve got to do is embody that Self-Sufficiency is yours. If you walk through life thinking you can’t have it, thinking you can’t afford luxury, embracing an impoverished mindset… You won’t realize that you probably have already realized it. Yup, I’m here to tell you that your mindset is the first set. Changing your mind about your circumstances helps you to see what little things can actually be luxury and being kind to yourself when you get to them.

Affirmation 2: Everyone needs help sometimes. I want you to abandon the ideology that needing support every once in a while does not mean you don’t have it together. It means you hit a hard spot and you need a hand. And those hands are out there for you to grasp, if you stop being too stubborn to reach. The good book says “And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:19) Sometimes that supply can come in the package of friends and/or family helping us out. Don’t be too proud to come out of an unfavorable situation.

Affirmation 3: Embrace the reality, chase the dream… responsibly. Let’s be honest. How many times did you order take out instead of eating what’s in the house? How many trips to the vending machine did you make when you were stressed by that project at work? How many times did you spend trying to keep up with someone else… just to feed a look? Stop doing that. Give your chance the opportunity to succeed by not cutting your own legs from under you. Be responsible, be reasonable, and be free… to actually have what you desire.

I want the best for you. Not because I think you deserve it, but because I know you do. And I know you want it. Even when you’re trying to convince yourself that you don’t… let’s not lie to ourselves in 2023. Let’s embrace that we want to chase the luxuries in life and make the choices that will allow that to be possible. Let’s check our anxieties and insecurities and walk towards a happy life instead of watching it from the window. Let’s not be consumed by the almighty dollar and be realistic in what happiness can and should be for ourselves and chase that, not somebody else’s version… we don’t know what they had to endure to get there. And lastly, lest